'Exhaustion without reward is torture'
I don't really know who wrote that. But I personally like to change it somewhat: 'suffering without reward is torture'.
For some people, pushing themselves to reach a goal brings great satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment. There's a reward when you put in the effort and succeed at the thing you wanted to achieve. If that's you, this quote might not be for you.
For me I found it just doesn't work that way. Even when I achieve things I work really hard for, I rarely get that sense of achievement. Or any positive feeling. Graduated college; couldn't give a f*ck. Only glad it was finally over. This especially applied to working hard at jobs, social things and certain physical activities.
In hindsight, these things that were supposed to bring satisfaction through hardship were way too difficult for me. I struggled, I kept believing that at some point, surely, it must all be worth it! But now I sometimes think about that quote when I am tempted to push myself again. I have chronic pain issues. And I realized there's no secret reward for not taking drugs to relieve my pain. I struggle with sleeping, there's no reward for not taking that sleeping pill.
I try to keep a reasonal balance in things. So I don't get addicted. And keeping a daily schedule and keeping my house clean does give me a sense of order. Not exactly accomplishment, but it's enough of a reward to keep doing those things.
Anyway, that quote helps me to sometimes stop pushing and not feel guilty about it. Leaving the house when I'm really dreading it: nope, not today, I know it's going to be too much and I'll just be torturing myself. I want to stop torturing myself.